This invention relates to an active package for an integrated circuit and a discrete component. More particularly, the invention relates to an active package for an integrated circuit in which the package comprises a discrete component as part of the housing for the integrated circuit.
A typical assembled circuit, such as a PCB assembled circuit, includes an integrated circuit individually packaged in a passive plastic or ceramic package that encapsulates and protects an integrated circuit, and one or more discrete component such as a resistor, capacitor or inductor that is assembled together with the integrated circuit onto a PCB circuit board. The assembled circuit, such as a power circuit, microprocessor, memory application, logic device, rf amplifier, etc., also generally includes transmission lines printed on the circuit board substrate and soldered interconnects that lead to parasitic losses due to the inherent resistance, capacitance and inductance of the transmission lines and soldered interconnects. These parasitic losses greatly increase in circuits that operate at high switching speeds. In order to minimize the parasitic losses, circuit designers have moved the circuit components closer together on the circuit board. Although the parasitic loss due to the transmission lines may be decreased, placing the components in close proximity may result in energy radiation, such as electromagnetic or heat, generated by one or more of the components may interfere with the operation of another component. In addition, higher current handling system designs face unique problems such as larger component size requirements due to potential dielectric or insulation breakdowns, energy storage requirements, heat dissipation, high transmission line losses, especially for switching converters where it affects the power conversion efficiency as well as voltage conversion efficiency and higher efficiency constraints.
Power circuits, such as switching power converters, linear regulators, power integrators, charge pumps, op amp circuits, comparator circuits, relay driver circuits, relay actuation circuits, power integration circuits with power monitoring and power control, proximity switches, etc., for example, typically include one or more power converting or regulation component and one or more intrinsic energy conversion, storage or conservation component that are individually packaged and assembled together on a single PCB substrate and/or inside a passive plastic or ceramic package (e.g., hybrid packages). A switching converter may include a charge pump integrated circuit, a flying capacitor and a storage capacitor or a plurality of capacitors that make up a flying or storage capacitor. The various components may generate electromagnetic or heat energy radiation that may affect the operation of other components. In order to dissipate the heat generated, many power circuits include a heat sink attached to the plastic or ceramic package that houses the power converting or regulation component (e.g., a TO220 standard power converter package). The total size of the package including the heat sink is typically at least an order of magnitude larger than the size of the integrated circuit itself depending upon the power dissipation, the power carrying capability and the number of pins required.
The present invention includes an integrated circuit package including an active component that is part of the circuit topology of the integrated circuit and forms at least a part of the housing for the integrated circuit. In one embodiment, for example, the integrated circuit may be housed in a shell formed by one or more discrete components to form an package in which the discrete component is an element of the circuit including the integrated circuit. The active package may be formed in the same geometry and dimensions as a standard passive integrated circuit package, may be formed in a shape to fit inside a standard or specially made battery package, or may be formed in a size and shape to fit in a device or to form a part of the chassis of the device.
In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, a smart component may include a discrete component or a semiconductor-based resistor, capacitor or inductor, and a separate integrated circuit housed in the same housing as the discrete component or a semiconductor-based resistor, capacitor or inductor. The integrated circuit may control at least one electrical parameter of the discrete component or a semiconductor-based resistor, capacitor or inductor. In one embodiment, for example, the integrated circuit may maintain the resistance, resistivity, capacitance, inductance, etc. of the component inside a narrow range in order to create a high-precision component regardless of changes in environmental changes such as temperature, pressure, humidity, etc.